It was mid April when I was invited to the Banks Bitterroot Ranch to take photos of ranch operations. Cody Hawk was the one that brought it all together. I had just met him at the Great Western show the prior month where his wife had some amazing metal sculptures at the show. Cody happened to be the head ranch hand at the banks Bitterroot ranch and thought it would be great if I came to take pictures. So he gathered up some other seasoned ranch hands, including his brother, and chose a day which was forecast to be mostly sunny with mild spring-like temperatures. However, in true Montana fashion the weather forecast was completely wrong. The day had that bone chilling cold bite to it with periodic snow showers on and off to keep things interesting. As any rancher or photographer knows – no matter the weather -- the work must go on! So I grabbed my hat, gloves, jacket and cameras and followed along. I was ready to capture the essence of ranching in Montana no matter the conditions.
The first task for the day was to round up the cattle for a Spring health check-up, apply de-wormer, complete any required vaccinations and for those that are new to add ear tags. With the ease of routine and in true Old Western Style, the ranch hands mounted their horses and prepared to round up the longhorns from a nearby pasture. Doing my best to stay out of the way, I captured pictures perched on top of the corral fence as they drove the cows from the pasture toward the holding pen. As they neared the gate, I dropped from the fence to sit low to the ground with my camera pointed through the open rails in order to witness the cows as they rounded the corner in a “Stampede”. This was the angle I was looking for, the one that captured the feeling of being in the direct path of these very large animals. While I was safely on the other side of the fence, it was surreal to have several thousand pounds of longhorn cows barreling straight toward me. Not only could I hear the sound of the hooves but I could feel the vibration through the ground as the longhorn cattle passed by.